Robert John East (December 17, 1984 – July 13, 2022) was an American professional
stock car racing
Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It or ...
driver. He raced in USAC, ARCA, and NASCAR. During his career in the latter two, East was a member of
Ford's driver development program.
Racing career
In 2001, East became the youngest driver at 16 years old to win a feature USAC National Midget event at the
Illiana Motor Speedway in
Schererville, Indiana
Schererville is a town in St. John Township, Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 29,646 at the 2020 census It is a suburb of Chicago located just 30 miles south of the city
History
Long before Indiana became a sta ...
.
East competed full-time in the
USAC National Midget Series where he was the champion in 2004 driving the
Steve Lewis Racing No. 9. The car's chassis was built by his father, Bob East, who is a renowned short-track car builder of midgets, sprints, and silver crown machines. The title gave him the distinction of being the youngest national champion in the series' history at age 19.
East was the most victorious driver during the
2004 USAC season with 15 victories among the series' three divisions. He wound up in victory lane seven times in national midgets, five times in national sprint cars, and once each in the Silver Crown, Western States Sprint Car, and Speedrome Regional Midget Series during the season. The highlights of the season were winning the
Hut Hundred and the
Turkey Night Grand Prix. During this prestigious time he attained the nickname 'Beast' among his loyal fans, which is an amalgamation of the first letter of his first-name 'B' combined alongside his last-name 'East', which is unlike his kind demeanor and character to those that know him, but better describes his victoriou
2004 season on Team Lewis placing 1st overall in his No. 9 car
East then moved on to racing stock cars. He first attempted to qualify for three races in the
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck based stock cars. The series is one of th ...
in
Roush Racing Roush is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
Politics
*Glenn Roush (1934–2020), American politician in Montana
* J. Edward Roush (1920–2004), United States Representative for Indiana, namesake of:
** J. Edward Roush Lake, a res ...
's No. 33 Ford, but failed to qualify for two of those races. In the one where he did qualify (at
Phoenix
Phoenix most often refers to:
* Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore
* Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States
Phoenix may also refer to:
Mythology
Greek mythological figures
* Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...
), he wrecked late in that event and finished 30th. Additionally, he drove the No. 21 for
Wood Brothers/
JTG Racing at the Homstead season-finale, but failed to qualify for that race, too. Also that year, East made his
ARCA Re/Max Series
The ARCA Menards Series is an American stock car series, the premier division of the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA). It is considered a minor, semi-professional league of stock car racing, used as a feeder series into the three national ...
debut, where he competed at
Talladega in October 2005, driving the No. 29 Ford for K Automotive Racing. A few weeks later, he made his
NASCAR Busch Series
The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...
debut at
Memphis in the No. 46 for
ST Motorsports and had a solid race, finishing 17th.
In
2006
File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
, East competed nearly full-time in the same truck, where he was teammates in the team's
driver development program
A driver development program (or driver development team) is a system or structure designed for young kart and race car drivers to learn and perfect their racing skills. These programmes are devised by racing teams, external companies and funded ...
with fellow rookie
Marcos Ambrose
Marcos Ambrose (born 1 September 1976) is an Australian former racing driver and current Garry Rogers Motorsport competition director. He won the Australian V8 Supercar series' championship in 2003 and 2004.
In 2006, Ambrose relocated to the ...
, who drove the team's No. 20 truck. East would finish the year 23rd in points despite missing the first two races of the season.
In
2007
File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhut ...
, East ran part-time in the Busch Series with
Brewco Motorsports
Brewco Motorsports was a racing team that competed in the NASCAR Busch Series (now the Xfinity Series). The team was owned from 1995 until 2007 by Clarence Brewer Jr., his wife Tammy, and Todd Wilkerson. The team won 10 races over 13 seasons in th ...
, splitting time in the team's No. 27, No. 37 and No. 43 cars. During the season, Brewco became Baker Curb Racing after a change in ownership.
East returned to the Truck Series part-time in
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
, reuniting with Roush to driving their No. 09
Zaxby's Ford F-150
The Ford F-Series is a series of light-duty trucks marketed and manufactured by Ford since the 1948 model year. Slotted above the Ford Ranger in the Ford truck model range, the F-Series is marketed as a range of full-sized pickup trucks. ...
. This included him winning the pole for the race at
IRP. Roush also tasked East with qualifying Cup Series
Carl Edwards
Carl Michael Edwards II (born August 15, 1979) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, driving the No. 19 Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing. Prior to that, he drove the No. 9 ...
' Nationwide (formerly Busch) Series No. 60 car for the race at Memphis, the same track he made his debut at three years earlier. However, East was not able to qualify very high in the field, placing 34th, although Edwards would go on to win the race after making his way through the field to the front, taking the lead on lap 69 and staying there for the rest of the race. This effort would end up being East's last outing in NASCAR.
Personal life
East was born in
Torrance, California
Torrance is a city in the Los Angeles metropolitan area located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city is part of what is known as the South Bay region of the metropolitan area. Torrance has of beachfront on the Pacific Oc ...
, and had also been living in
Brownsburg, Indiana
Brownsburg is a town in Hendricks County, Indiana, United States. The population was recorded to be 21,285 residents at the 2010 Census, an increase from the 14,520 residents in 2000. the estimated population was recorded to be 27,001 residents ...
. Following the conclusion of his motorsports career, East experienced
depression, used alcohol, and was diagnosed with
schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. Other symptoms include social with ...
by medical professionals. His parents believed these were caused or exacerbated by
chronic traumatic encephalopathy
Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a neurodegenerative disease linked to repeated trauma to the head. The encephalopathy symptoms can include behavioral problems, mood problems, and problems with thinking. The disease often gets worse o ...
from repeated head trauma suffered in racing accidents. As East was a
homicide
Homicide occurs when a person kills another person. A homicide requires only a volitional act or omission that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from accidental, reckless, or negligent acts even if there is no inten ...
victim, an autopsy could not be performed to confirm whether the disease was present in his brain within the required timeframe after death.
Death
On July 13, 2022, while filling his car with gas at a
76 gas station in
Westminster, California
Westminster is a city in northern Orange County, California, known for its many Vietnamese refugees who immigrated to the city during the 1980s. They settled largely in Little Saigon, and the city is known as the "capital" of overseas Vietname ...
, East was accosted by Trent Millsap, a transient who had a warrant for a parole violation out on him. The two exchanged words and Millsap stabbed East in his chest; East was rushed to the hospital, but died from his injuries shortly thereafter.
Millsap was later found hiding in an apartment in nearby
Anaheim
Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the 10th-most p ...
and was killed in a shootout with Orange County police.
Motorsports career results
NASCAR
(
key) (
Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
Nationwide Series
Craftsman Truck Series
ARCA Re/Max Series
(
key) (
Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:East, Bobby
1984 births
2022 deaths
People from Brownsburg, Indiana
Racing drivers from Indiana
NASCAR drivers
Sportspeople from Torrance, California
Racing drivers from California
ARCA Menards Series drivers
USAC Silver Crown Series drivers
Deaths by stabbing in California
People murdered in California
Male murder victims
American murder victims
2022 murders in the United States
20th-century American people
21st-century American people
RFK Racing drivers